Downsizing – Round 2

Earlier, first Quarter this year, the Can Opener resolved to downsize EVERYthing . Yep, that’s right. Everything.

I was skeptical but cheered him on from my usual kinetic perch on the comfiest sofa cushion. And he’s made some definite inroads on the paper stacks there’s no denying.

But now we approach the final and 4th Quarter of the year and it’s time to mark progress again. That is if I can find my First Mate under the boxes… Yes, Downsizing Round 2 has begun. 

The ultimate goal? 
To fit our entire life into 20 boxes or less. 

The chances of achieving this by year end?
Hmmm. 

Things that can get us closer to the ultimate goal?

1. Putting all our tunes on an online account and in a single hard drive as back up.
2. Kindle. Kindle. Kindle. Ideally the only paper books we’ll carry aboard will be reference texts. And a few literary wonders as back up. The Can Opener does love his books, so this will have real impact.
   
3. Our new scanner is our new best friend. Paper and documents. Photos. Sentiment. Scanning a life of photos into the computer and loading ’em online is a project in itself.

Have you ever downsized your life to fit in a boat – or any other similarly small living space? Japanese hotel room? Tent? Dorm room? Spaceship?
 
Got any great finetuning tips for managing seemingly endless amounts of stuff?

Any helpful hints gratefully received…

–Captain Cat 

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Previously: Downsizing Everything

Departure Checklist – Closing Up The Boat

 After a few productive and enjoyable training days with the new cruising crew, I had the Can Opener draft a ‘to do’ guide for closing up the boat for a short time after a training weekend. 

This is to make sure we do everything necessary to take care the boat before leaving it at the dock.

The team we’re training with is a stickler for boat care and a dehumidifier is used whenever we’re not aboard to make sure it stays dry and mildew-free. We live in a rather damp country…


Here’s the Can Opener’s list:


 

DEPARTURE CHECKLIST
at end of a short passage 

Seacocks

• Close seacock valve – toilet outflow
• Close seacock valve – seawater for toilet inflow
• Close seacock valve – seawater for engine cooling inflow
• Ensure seacock valve still open – galley sink outflow (for dehumidifier)

  

Electricity

• Ensure fuse is on for dehumidifier
• Ensure onshore electricity is hooked up (for dehumidifier)
• Ensure onshore electrical extension cord is secure – wrapped once around electric box on dock and once more around nearby cleat
• Turn off electricity to service system
• Turn off all white circuit breaker switches by nav station

 
Cabin

• Close and lock all hatches – bow (1), saloon (1), loo (1) and stern ports (2)
• Tidy and stow everything
• Clean all glass and silver surfaces
• Hoover floors
• Clean loo and under sole in loo
• Put ‘conditioner’ in loo
• Set up dehumidifier – plugged in? yellow hose into sink? dehumidifier turned on?
• Leave all interior cabin doors open for ventilation
• Turn up cushions and mattresses for ventilation
• Close curtains to reduce interior sun damage
• Put GPS cover on at nav station

 
Galley

• Sort and store dry goods in galley cupboards
• Remove all perishable foods from boat
• Do dishes
• Clean sink and silver surfaces
• Wipe down all counters
• Wipe inside refrigerator
• Leave refrigerator door open for ventilation
• Confirm propane gas switch in galley above sink is turned off
• DOUBLE CHECK that propane gas tank is turned off by helm!

 
Deck & Dock

• Coil all lines
• Confirm all sails secure
• Confirm that all dock lines are secure and halyards not slapping against the mast
• Confirm fenders are in right place and doing a good job
• Bring in life ring and life sling and store them inside cabin
• Replace plastic covers on instruments
• Remove engine start keys and place on berth in stern cabin
• Raise dodger
• Tie sail tie around the furled jib
• Loosen genoa halyard
• Loosen both backstays
• Hose saltwater off deck and exterior surfaces (make sure all hatches are closed first!)
• Lock up boat!

 
Admin

• Make a LIST of what groceries and supplies need to be bought for next time
• Marine Office – return boat keys
• Marine Office – return shower block keys
• Other Marine Office business?
• Other planning-for-next-time business?

When we’ve tested this list a bit and made sure there are no more important adds, I’ll have my First Mate adapt it for an ‘Arrival at the Boat’ check list.

Do you have a departure check list? Any suggestions for things-to-do to add to this one?

 

–Captain Cat 

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Next: Arrival Checklist – Opening Up The Boat

 

It’s Official!

The paperwork’s done and it’s official – we’re now full members of the Red Tabby Yacht Club!

We joined in October as temporary members and loved the sailing events, opportunities and Welcome Cocktail Party. It’s certainly a friendly crowd round here, full of enthusiasm and those who love sailing as much as we do. 

There’s something about a mutual love of boats that really brings folks together.

I’m glad we joined (as I recall Furrball, at the time you emphatically expressed your doubts – something about how many smoked oysters the club fees could alternatively be spent on… No, dear Can Opener, your memory is flawed). 

In fact, I think I feel a song coming on. My rock ‘n’ roll duet mate, Prince ‘A’, would approve. I think he said he’d be in town next week… Must practice before we debut it to fans fawning about us at the club bar.

–Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can opener)

The Red Tabby Yacht Club

Next: Sailing Season Begins!
Previously:  MORE Cocktails!

Cruising Clothing Condensed

Steps in managing clothing inventory

How did this many pairs of jeans happen to the First Mate??
Short answer: Something about being a vegetarian (which he isn’t). The Can opener’s reply was a bit unclear and muffled through a mouthful of smoked mussels… 

In fact, I’m not convinced he really needs any clothes at all. 
I don’t. 

However, the Can Opener seems adamant. What perverse motivation ignites this bizarre drive to adorn remains a mystery. 

Modus Operandi

• toss contents of one drawer or closet onto bed each day
• sort into categories:
1. fat clothes
2. hate it
3. totally worn out and should be rags
4. totally worn out but are sentimental
5. okay but need repair
6. okay

• consolidate like items 
• toss each of #1~5 into their own box and then:
1. recycle
2. recycle
3. make ’em into rags
4. send this box up to the attic/loft (sentiment is important and if you give it away, you can’t get it back)
5. keep this box in a place that’ll get in yer way till all repairs are complete
6. put it back in the closet, drawer, whatever

Sound easy? Sure. Sort of. But once again, it took time. More time than we budgeted for.  

The Can Opener missed the Cameron Diaz movie we’d been looking forward to for days. (Those Charlie’s Angels give you a lot of insight in foreign negotiations. I haven’t let the First Mate downsize my wig collection yet – they will clearly be quite useful.)

Fortunately, I was able to report plot developments to him from the TV couch while he toiled on.

How are we doing?

Process ongoing.  

Next Steps

Open the next drawer (or closet) and repeat the process till we’re all done. 

We’ll be making an inventory list and figuring out what’s missing. It’ll be good reference for filling in the gaps and for ‘clothes provisioning’ a yacht later.

We’re on our way…

Got any great tips for managing way too many clothes that we should add to our system?

–Captain Cat


(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Downsizing 
Previously: Managing Food Inventory

Managing Food Inventory

First steps in provisioning and managing food inventory

How did this many bottles of beans and spices happen to us??
Short answer: An unspecified number of failed attempts by the Can Opener to become a vegetarian…

You don’t just buy the beans and rice, mate. To be a vegetarian, you have to eat them too.

Simultaneously, more than a few of our London friends evacuated to follow their next big dream job – leaving behind surprising amounts of dry goods in their wake. We became the beneficiaries of piles of duplicate bottles of spices and grains…

Yes, indeed. We are good for cinnamon, galangal, couscous and nampla for the foreseeable future.

Modus Operandi

A pretty simple process…

• consolidate like items
• toss/recycle a million glass bottles
• rank by expiry dates
• keep in handy cupboards the oldest of each to use up first (first in first out principle…)
• store back inventory in most difficult to reach cupboards
• and list what we have there

Sound easy? Sure. Sort of. But it took time. More time than we budgeted for. 

The Can Opener missed the first two scenes of the Bruce Lee movie we’d been looking forward to all week.

Fortunately, I was able to carry on supervising him from the TV couch while he finished up.

How are we doing?

Done. 

Next Steps
Now that we know what we have, we can eat down the insane amounts of stores we’re sitting on.

We could have made it through the winter under 2 metres of snow and no hope of exiting the windows! Not that that’ll ever happen. What with the daffodils pushing up in January and all this year…

The Can Opener should be able to munch through even this gargantuan stockpile by the end of the year. And so he will. Neither of us believe in waste.

We’ll be maintaining the inventory lists and noting what and how much we eat this year. It’ll be good reference for provisioning a yacht later.

We’re on our way…

Have you ever maintained food stock inventories? On land or at sea?
Got any great finetuning tips for managing food that we should add into our system?

–Captain Cat

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

Downsizing
Next: Cruising Clothing Condensed
Previously: Downsizing Books – Can It Be Done?

Downsizing Books – Can It Be Done?

What are we doing?

Here‘s the decision tree I‘m training the Can Opener to use on his books…

1. Has the Can Opener read the book?

• If, yes… 
• is it sentimental?
• childhood book
• gift
• favourite book
• or actually written by a friend? 
• Or is it a reference text?
• sailing
• finance
• language text or dictionary
• travel guide
• …

• Sentiment and reference, he can keep.
• All else gets donated to the library (or if they won’t take it, the local youth hostel).

2. Has the Can Opener EVER read the book?

• If not read… — whaaaaaattt???? Why has my hard earned catfood been spent on this??!!!
• Will he ever read this?
• If yes, then go to 1.
• If no, then it gets donated. End of story.

Progress
You‘d think I‘d asked the Can Opener to put wax on his legs and then rip it off before he went cycling again. 


But despite all the yelping and anguish, we are making progress.


And it feels good to donate to the library. Our local biblio-rama is desperately in need of more business tomes and books of every kind.


I even plan to donate my beloved Encyclopedia of Feline Karate Bo, by Sensei Hiro Nekko. I‘ve already learned all the foundation moves anyway and am working on the ‘Intermediate‘ sequel.




It‘s aaaaall got to fit in a boat that‘s 30 feet or less. We’re on our way…

–Captain Cat


(transcribed by the Can Opener)


Downsizing
Next: Managing Food Inventory
Previously: Downsizing Papers That Breed

Downsizing Papers That Breed

Okay. This is the beginning of a loooong project…

There are two things at work here 
…that have caused the Can Opener’s current amazing-amounts-of-paper situation. 

One is that if you put two pieces of paper together on a desk – they breed at a speed that makes the Creationist version of evolution (it aaaaall happened in only 7 days…) look like an action movie slowed down to near standstill.

The other thing is that the Can Opener hasn’t changed continents in about a decade. And he is, in fact, a pretty thorough records-keeper (a legacy from his dark years as a Wharton-trained financial analyst). Hence there hasn’t been a paper purge in about a decade… It’s pretty daunting.

The only way to approach it all is with the sausage technique. Divide and conquer. One bitty stack at a time.


So how are we doing? 

1. I’ve got the Can Opener’s stacks of unfiled stuff on the desk halfway sorted. Yes, that’s right. Half-way. Every second paper is a ‘to do’ in itself…
2. And after all those papers are into binders or in the garbage, then I’ll (ruthlessly) prune the binders again.
3. The surviving binders (a box or two?) get stuffed in the attic for now.

And in other paper-based news?
The Can Opener has already done a first purge on his books. He’s attaches a fair bit of sentiment to some of them so this requires deliberation. Sometimes more than this cat has patience for. 

Books in my view are just platforms for snoozing upon and so one book is very much like another. I take this gooeyness as some tolerably less dangerous evidence of the Can Opener’s insanity and so grant him some indulgence here.

But he has managed to drag a stack of business texts over to the local library to donate and there are a couple more piles waiting to go. The Red Tabby Yacht Club library will likely get a tome or two as well.

The paper photos of decades are going to get i) scanned, ii) organised and iii) backed up online. Something that should have been done long ago.

We’re taking our time but keeping a steady pace. I’ve given us till the end of the year to get it done.

We’re on our way…

–Captain Cat


(transcribed by the Can Opener)


Downsizing
Next: Downsizing Books
Previously: Downsizing Everything




 

Downsizing Everything

Somehow over the long years the Can Opener has accumulated insane amounts of stuff. And it’s gotta go.

It’s mostly books, clothes, CDs, sports equipment and a few sticks of furniture. 

And paper records – records that stretch from here to forever: taxes, bank statements, photos, more photos… The kind of stuff that takes forever to go through, page by page.

Over the next year I will be (ruthlessly) paring all this down… until it’s reduced enough to fit inside a 30 foot boat.

The amazing thing about minimising everything you own is that after it’s gone, you can’t even remember what you had. (Yeah Furrball, if it’s my stuff, you aren’t going to notice that it’s gone. No point in asking if I get any say in this?… Thought not.)

Of course, I am perfectly positioned to pare down the Can Opener’s stuff. It’s always easier to organise someone else’s.

I will, however, also be organising my own assortment of things. Because I’m that dedicated.

I plan for a lazarette or two as shrines to the necessaries – my regal trappings, the smoked oyster collection, my colour-coded frillies… A few banks of my favourite snoozing books. The collapsible karate/yoga platform. There will only be room for basics. 

We’re on our way…

–Captain Cat


(transcribed by the Can Opener)


Downsizing
Next: Downsizing Paper